Prostaglandin D2-Mediated DP2 and AKT Signal Regulate the Activation of Androgen Receptors in Human Dermal Papilla Cells

The study from February 12, 2018, explored the impact of Prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) on androgen receptor (AR) activity and AKT signaling in human dermal papilla cells (hDPCs), which are important for hair growth. The researchers discovered that PGD2 increased AR expression and AKT signaling via the PGD2 receptor 2 (DP2). Inhibition of DP2 or AKT signaling led to a decrease in AR-related factors and AKT signaling. The study suggests that the PGD2-DP2 pathway is crucial in regulating AR expression and may play a significant role in the development of androgenetic alopecia (AGA). The findings, which are based on in vitro experiments and represented as the mean ± SD of three independent experiments, indicate that targeting the PGD2-DP2-AKT pathway could be a potential therapeutic strategy for treating hair loss conditions like AGA. The research was supported by the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy (MOTIE) and Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (KIAT), with no conflicts of interest declared by the authors.